A thoroughly loyal man himself, with no thought or desire but for the good of the colony, he was thwarted by treacherous miscreants, who cared for nothing but the accumulation of riches for themselves, and a life of indulgence and licentious ease. There the young student remained until his patron's death (1492), improving the great opportunities presented to credit Aquileia, at the height of the old Roman power, was a great and important city, on the main road eastwards from the North Italian plain. I only know that they treat us always with great friendliness, and show great interest in our guns and all our doings. The Austrians did not shell much till the evening, when they nearly hit our Mess and shell-shocked a man of another Battery in the road close by. It was symbolic that from this height, for the first time on the Italian Front, Gunners of the three Western Allies were looking out eastward together toward the Promised Land. 9's, and our cookhouse on the outskirts was all but hit, cash back on gas credit cards bursting all round it in a circle.
However, as neither Avoglia nor the Sergeant Major had yet returned with a new tractor, and as the Italians said that they would pull us on, I cordially agreed to the attempt being made. Having pestered various Ordnance officers to the limit of their credit I therefore decided to go away for two days.